This month for Blogger Board Game Club, we were sent the game – Carcassonne. I had actually seen this game on the YouTube programme “Tabletop” and had been interested to try it for a while.

At first, when you unpack the box, Carcassonne looks like it could be quite a difficult game, but it’s actually really easy to wrap your head around – once you get going. The first thing to do, is decide who is being which colour and divide out the Meeples. There are 5 different colours – red, green, black, blue and yellow. Each player has 7 in their hand and another to be used on the board game.

Taking it in turns, players draw a tile card and place it connecting to the “starter tile”. The tile must fit with the landscape, continuing any roads or cities etc.

After laying your piece, you can then also place one of your Meeples, if you want to. You can claim a city, a piece of road or a monastery. Each choice, holds a different points value, but only once the location is completed. For example, if you place a Meeple in the city, you place him as a knight. You will score points once this city is completely sealed on all edges. If you place a Meeple on the road, he becomes a highwayman. Once the road has ended, either by the introduction of a city piece, a town or a crossroads, you then score for the road you’ve made. And with the monastery, you place a Meeple as a monk – to complete that, you must have all 8 adjoining tiles in place.

As you only have 7 Meeples, you have to think carefully when you will place them as you don’t get them back until the city, road or monastery is complete. Each placement is a risk, hoping you can make the area as big as possible for maximum points, but also finished to ensure you can claim the points. You then record each rounds worth of points on the scoreboard.

The game continues on and on, with each person laying a tile and then choosing whether or not to claim a piece of land with a Meeple, then scoring where relevant. When the last tile has been laid, the game starts to come to an end. At this point, all the remaining points are tallied. Points are awarded now for all incomplete places on the board but for the most part these are a lesser value than completed places previously. You add all the points for the remaining places and then the winner is known – the person with the most points.

This is a great game, suitable for all the family as it’s really easy to understand. It’s fun too because you never quite know who is winning, because it can change so much on each turn and then again drastically at the very end. Each game doesn’t take very long to play either so again it’s good for kids who don’t often have a very long attention span. It also means you can play a few games each time without feeling like it’s taking too long.

In addition to the way I have explained it, there is also a slightly harder version which can be played, whereby you place Meeples in fields and make them farmers. This adds a whole new layer to the game and can make scoring really big. Also, this particular version of the game, came with a small expansion of Rivers and Abbots. We haven’t played this version yet but the expanson rules are included and it looks like a very interesting twist on the original game.

As you may know, I love board games and have often posted about them previously. Even before meeting my current partner Chris, I used to host board game nights with my friends and as a child we were always bought board games as Christmas presents. Since meeting Chris (and watching a YouTube show called Tabletop) I have really found a love for playing games and have quite a large collection. That said, the board games we play aren’t really your typical Monopoly, Game of Life, Cluedo etc (though we do have those too). When I was asked if I would like to joing “Blogger Board Game Club“, I jumped at the chance and the first game I was sent was Ticket to Ride – My First Journey.

Ticket to Ride (the original game) is one of my most favourite board games of all time. I have played both the USA edition and the European version and we currently own a copy of the USA one. Though we had played Ticket to Ride with my eldest daughter, we had always felt it was a little too complicated for my youngest daughter. So when this arrived as our first game, I was actually thrilled that she would now be able to play it too.

The concept of the game is really simple. You have a board with cities, and routes connecting them. Each route has between 1-3 spaces. Players draw 2 route cards at random and keep them hidden from the other players.

Players have plastic trains, each with their own player colour, which they will lay down on the board to claim the route. In order to claim the route, you need coloured train cards – the same amount as the route requires. For example Paris to Madrid requires either 3 blue train cards or 3 red train cards.

You cash in the cards, place your trains and claim the route from city to city. The aim being, to collect the full route listed on your card. Once you have claimed the full route, whatever that is, you lay the card down where players can see and then pick up another random route card.

There are bonus cards available for Coast to Coast routes and these count towards your final route card count. The winner of the game, is the person who gets 6 route cards (with or without a bonus card) first. That winner then receives the Golden Ticket!

When we previously played the original Ticket to Ride versions, my partner always used to come last but when we played My First Journey, he won all three time (clearly he’s a child at heart). Both my daughters loved the game and although some might consider it a dumbed down version for children, the excitement and competitiveness is still there, whereby it’s not always going to be an adult that wins, just because its a child version. Geographically it could be classed as an educational game too. The game uses some major cities for connecting routes and its always good for kids to get a feel of where in the world these cities are.

Ticket to Ride – My First Journey was a really enjoyable game to play. It helped having played the original first, to explain the rules, but the rules are also so simple that it isn’t at all hard to grasp how to play. We played three times in one evening when we first played and have played several times since. The box hasn’t even been put away in the board game cupboard all summer holidays, just because the girls always ask if we can play it. I highly recommend all versions of Ticket to Ride, to adults and children alike.

On New Year’s Eve I wrote a post reflecting on 2016 and so today I want to look forward to 2017. As it’s already 3rd January I’m sure it’s probably clear that a whole “new me” is not on the horizon. I think I’ve learned from previous years, that that’s not the best route for me. Instead little changes, positive attitude and a hope for better things, is the direction I would like to go.

This Year I will:

Get a better grip on my finances. As I’ve mentioned on my blog before, I have a lot of debt – largely from my time as a single mum (I mean, I’m technically still a single mum but I have a very supportive partner now). For a few years, I just buried my head and the debt got worse but then two years ago it all hit me and I had to stop avoiding it. 2016 was the year I finally started to get that debt down and while I definitely managed to stop adding to it and clear one particular lump of debt, I still have a fair way to go. I have a specific target in mind by the end of the year and that will hopefully lessen my debt by about a third.

Work hard on my business, Closet Geek. It would be a lie to say I don’t work hard on it already as to be honest its my main focus, after the kids. I have thoroughly enjoyed working from home this last year and despite how crazy busy it has gotten at times, I wouldn’t change a thing. This year I am aiming to add at least 6 more product ranges (don’t ask me what, I have no idea yet) and hopefully more variations of the products I already sell. That said, I must remember to take time out and relax (which is hard because I often get into a flow).

Weight Loss is something I want to focus on this year. I haven’t jumped into any kind of diet yet as there is still a lot of bad food kicking around the house. However I am trying to regulate myself and not eat too my rubbish and when routine starts over again and I start cooking evening meals from scratch, I aim to make healthy dishes and avoid any junk. Last year I felt uncomfortable in my skin and it stopped me from dressing up, cosplaying and even feeling like I wanted to make any sort of effort. Its amazing what a knock on effect feeling overweight can have to all areas of life. I also want to try walking more often, especially as life isn’t so hectic that I need to save every minute of time by hopping in the car.

Last year was a wonderful change to family life, working from home instead of feeling stressed in the job I had previously (I actually can’t believe I walked out on that job 2 years ago – I’ve honestly never regretted it). I managed to attend so many of the kids events at school and I’m sure I will be doing so again this year. That said I want to make time outside of those events, to do things as a family. The kids love to play board games (we had a day doing that during holiday), go swimming and play computer games (Lily and I have played Lego Harry Potter for most days of the holidays) so I want to make more time for fun, not just scheduled events. I also want to make more time for Chris as he often gets neglected, just because he “understands more”. On evenings when he’s not at work, I need to step away from my sewing or even my computer and just be with him – doing whatever it is we feel like doing.

This year I would like to:

Moving house is definitely top of the list for things I’d like to do in 2017. Sadly not a huge amount of that decision is in our hands, but we need to try wherever possible. From the house going on the market last April, till now, we’ve only had two viewings. I think there has been many reasons to that but largely the price recommended by the agents is too high. We do have another viewing tomorrow so we will see how that goes but at some point this year we will have to make some firmer decisions – perhaps to change agents, sell at a loss, or whatever other options there might be.

During January I have a weekend away booked with the girls, to Disneyland Paris. However as much as I’m looking forward to it, I’d really like a nice week away somewhere abroad. Top choice for this year would definitely be Italy and ideally during the warm weather. Chris booking holidays at work can be a pain though as he can often only get out of school holiday time. With Megan now at secondary school I am loathed to take them out of school for a holiday, so it’s definitely going to be a juggling act – and of course available money. If we can’t get away this year, I would definitely love to book something bigger for next year – maybe a two week holiday somewhere further afield like the US.

This Year I will try:

Yesterday I was in a position (as I often am) where one of the girls asked if we could do something (something they had been asking for a while and have been saying “soon” to) and my immediate answer was “yes, tomorrow”. Now although that might seen immediate to you, it’s really only because it was that day or tomorrow that we needed to do it, before it was too late. But my reaction was still the latter, not the actual immediate. However after I walked away, I thought “actually, why can’t we just do it now?” and so that’s what we did. Basically I really want to stop putting things off till tomorrow and just get on with them. Because tomorrow never really comes and before you realise it, you’ve been putting everything off and never getting anything done.

When we went swimming, the girls and I, I was reminded of how much I enjoy it and, that despite not going very often, I’m still pretty good at it. While I don’t always want to go when they suggest it, I did realise I could take them and just watch (they’re both old enough now), but also I could go when they’re at school and just swim lengths. It would be a great way to make time for me, get fitter and even find time to shower! I don’t want to set myself a frequency but I would like to swim more.

As I mentioned last year, our friendship group is a little bit fractured now and so in the past 12 months I haven’t thrown any large group events. I think its probably easiest to just see each group of working friendships, by themselves, whenever there is time, rather than force everyone to get together. Last year we did enjoy a meal out as a group of friends, a cinema trip as a double date and a few times having friends around for dinner. I would like to continue that this year, making more of an effort but hopefully making time for everyone.

Finally I should probably give my blog a mention. At this time of year it’s always easy to say “I’ll post more”, or “I’ll post frequently” but the truth is when life gets busy, my blog takes a backseat. I also often find that I lose inspiration for what to write at times and it can become just one big life update that people probably aren’t that interested in. I’m ditching Project 52 (as I did towards the end of last year) as I always forget to take pictures weekly). Instead I might do something monthly, as I did with my round-ups (which definitely suits me better so I will be sticking to those). I’d like to keep updating about books I read (which maybe should have been another bulletpoint as I really should read more) and movies we see at the cinema but past that I’m uncertain of the direction my blog will take. I am considering various options though so watch this space!

As I mentioned in my Wish List post for Valentine’s Day, February 14th has always been so much more than about couples for me. Ever since Megan was born, I have always bought a gift for her on V Day and when Lily was born, her too. It’s a silly thing really I suppose, but I love them just as much as any partner I’ve had – generally I love them a lot more!

This year, my mum – my go to babysitter – is away in New Zealand and so I knew there would be no me and Chris time anyway. To be honest, we find our own time to spend together – usually Monday nights or the odd trip away. In fact tonight we might be heading out to see Deadpool! Anyway, when I knew that the day would be spent as a family, I decided it would be nice to really spend it as a family and spread the love around amoungst us.

About two weeks ago, we decided that for Valentine’s Day, we would each buy each other a gift. So I would get for Chris, Megan and the girls (as I would anyway), but they would each buy a gift for each person too. Megan has her own bank account now so this was really exciting for her. She picked out Lily and Chris’ gift all by herself, then her and Lily chipped together (though Megan purchased it) for mine. I helped Lily pick out something for Megan and she was cheeky with Chris’ and pinched something from a Nerd Block we received, knowing it was something he’d like. Chris got it easy – already knowing he would buy for me, he picked up a box of chocolates for the girls (at my suggestion) and so really he didn’t have to use much brain power! To be fair, I know he struggles enough for mine.

On Valentine’s Day morning, we got up at normal (relaxed) time as part of the enjoyment of the day was not to feel rushed. We opened our gifts from each other and said thank you of course!

I bought Chris a pair of Star Wars pj bottoms, but also a new copy of Burgle Bros (a game he’d bought on Kickstarter and I’d accidentally split my tea on an ruined half the cards). Megan bought Chris a Star Wars Deathstar ice cube maker and Lily got Chris the White Walker figure from Game of Thrones.

Chris got the girls Ferrero Rocher as I mentioned before and he got me a photo frame and a really cute Me to You bear that’s a) a bee (I love bees, being nicknamed Bee by close friends) b) a blue nose friend and Chris has always bought me those and c) it says Bee Mine on it (lame pun but I still love it).

For Megan I got her a Pop Funko figure of Disgust (I think Megan pulls some similar faces!) and Lily bought her a Ravenclaw coaster and some Ravenclaw socks. For Lily I got her a Mulan Pop Funko (apparently her new favourite Princess) and Megan got her some Lego (Wyldestyle) since she seems to be into this again! The girls together bought me a really awesome Mickey Mouse Disney Tradition, which is funny because the Minnie was on my wish list last week!

There were nice cards, plenty of hugs and kisses and it was really lovely! Next up came breakfast – well more like brunch! We had all our favourite things, including; turkey rashers, croissants, pain au chocolat, cheese topped baguettes, real butter, chocolate crepes and prosecco (the girls had chocolate milk). The croissants and pain au chocolat were freshly made and they were amazing!

After brunch we played board games. First was Chris’ new copy of Burgle Bros – we played twice and lost both times. Next was “Say Anything”, a game that Megan has been dying to play for years and it was pretty fun. Afterwards we headed into the lounge and watched Tron Legacy. This was “boys” pick for movies and although Chris and I had seen it before, the girls both surprised themselves by enjoying it too.

After the movie it was actually dinner time. None of us were especially hungry but we knew we needed to fit it in, as we had plans for another movie after dinner. We had planned a three course meal, earlier in the week, and each taken responsibility for a course. Megan picked to do garlic bread slices topped with cheese, while I made Beef Stroganoff and Lily chose chocolate fondue for dessert. Chris was in charge of drinks so he bought us a bottle of rosé and the girls were allowed some strawberry and lime cider.

Finally, completely stuffed after dinner we headed back to the lounge again and this time it was “girls” pick. Though Lily wasn’t convinced, Megan and I chose Moulin Rouge and though no one but me had seen it, I think it went down fairly well. Of course its a bit of a strange movie but its also amazing too. Both girls cried at the end (like me) so I think that’s generally a hit!

After this it was Lily’s bed time and so she headed up while the rest of us just relaxed. Megan went to bed an hour later and we weren’t long after that either. All in all it was a really lovely day and something I would definitely consider doing again.

Tomorrow I’m planning a belated Galentine’s Day for all my favourite girlies and I’m really excited for that too. February is turning out to be so much better than January and at least the year feels like it’s off to a good start!

Over the next few weeks I’m going to be sharing some of my ideas for gift guides, including “for him”, “for her”, “for kids” etc. However I wanted to start off with a wish list of my own! This is my Christmas Wishlist 2015.

As you will see, even at a glance, my wishlist is almost entirely filled with Disney. This is because Disney is probably my biggest fandom love, followed immediately by Harry Potter (which there are also several items for). Anyway, let’s get started!

On the left hand side of the guide, you will see an Inside Out board game and a Ticket to Ride board game. I absolutely love playing board games, both with my family and with my friends. Though we already own a version of both these games, I would love these versions (just like I would love Disney Villains monopoly still). Inside Out seems like such a great idea for Game of Life and a United Kingdom version of Ticket to Ride sounds fun! On that same side you will also spot two DVDs, Inside Out and Tomorrowland. Inside Out isn’t released yet but Tomorrowland has been for a while, I’d like both to add to my every growing Disney DVD collection. Finally on that side is a Thomas Kinkade Disney calendar. I had the mini version last year but I would love the full size version as my main calendar this year. I love the art work and even better when you’re done with it you could always frame the pages.

On the right hand side I have clothes. The dress is an Alice print dress from Hot Topic which I absolutely love. I have another dress from Hot Topic in this style and its my favourite Disney dress. I also have this exact print in a scarf (which I’m wearing now) and I love it. Not only that it’s black and I know I’d get lots of wear out of it, even in winter paired with a cardigan and tights. Secondly there is a set of PJs and these are Beauty and the Beast from Topshop. Last year I treated myself to a pair of PJs from Topshop and though they had cuff bottoms on the trousers (which I thought I would hate) I loved them and as such would love this pair for this year.

Heading for the middle of the wishlist you can see its basically an array of ornaments and Pop Funko figures. However there is a Harry Potter umbrella in there too. I love the Marauders Map print and I know I would get loads of use out of this – especially living in the UK where rain is our standard. Also not an ornament is the Disney Villains bag. This is from Loungefly and have I loved their stuff for a long time. In this style there is also a Disney Villains wallet but as it doesn’t have card slots I know I wouldn’t use it much. This bag however is amazing and I would love to use it as my every day handbag. Not technically an ornament, this candle is also on my wishlist. It’s available from the Disney Store and comes in a few different colours. I’m not a huge candle fan but I find myself more drawn to them this time of year. Plus it’s Disney. No brainer.

Finally, onto the ornaments in the middle. There are four Disney Traditions/Showcase ornaments and some of these are firm favourites while others are new to my wish list. I have loads of Beauty and the Beast ornaments already but since it’s my favourite, I’d love to have them all. The ornament of Belle with the Beast has been on my wish list since last Christmas so hopefully this year I’ll get lucky and manage to get it. The one of Mrs Potts is new (or at least I haven’t seen it before) and since I have one of Lumiere and Cogsworth together, I’d love to have this too. That then leaves the Villains. Maleficent joined my wishlist over a year ago, for my birthday last year when we watched the new Maleficent movie. I love this figure so much but sadly it went out of stock last Christmas and I ended up with the Evil Queen instead. It’s now back in stock in most places so I’d love to add it to my collection. Then there is the “hag”, who is the Evil Queen from Snow White. I’m not exactly sure what draws me to this ornament as it’s pretty ugly but I love it nonetheless. Next comes the Pop Funko and sure enough one is Disney (sort of) and another is Harry Potter. I started out my collection of Pop Funkos with only Disney and I’ve tried hard to resist branching out into other Fandoms as its a disaster waiting to happen. However we do have several others, including some Harry Potter. I love this Voldemort figure and it would definitely be my next pick to add to the collection, though I would happily take any I do have (which is only Harry and Dumbledore). Regina Mills aka the Evil Queen from Once Upon a Time is another figure I’d love. She is my favourite character by far and I hope to cosplay his exact outfit someday. While OUAT isn’t technically Disney, its definitely a branch of it and therefore adding the OUAT figures to my collection is a must! Finally that leaves Katniss Everdeen. Until a few days ago I didn’t even know Hunger Games existed as Pop Funko figures. Now I know, I sort of want them all. Katniss is available in several different variations but I think this is my favourite – like I said though, I would take them all.

I could have gone on and on but hey, Christmas is about giving not receiving – so instead of concentrating on what I’d like, I’ll soon be moving on to what you can get for others!

Another hectic week this week, leaving little time to blog. Right now I’m actually sat on my sofa, with a cup of tea, updating from my phone!

So last week was a fairly regular week. Girls at school and Chris at work. Monday I had a super lazy day. I did do some work in my computer but as of taking the girls to school, I really just sat on my butt watching tv all day. It was so great after weeks of working endlessly on orders! Tuesday I went into town and what should have been a quick pop in turned into a wander around but that was nice too and I picked up some bits and pieces for Christmas. That evening, after school, the girls and I played Hey That’s My Fish, which was a lot of fun and nice to do something together.

On Wednesday it was mine and Chris’ anniversary. We’re not married but we have been together 3 years so we celebrated with a few small gifts, dinner and some TV. Sadly he was at work during the day but Nat kept me company instead, most of which was planning her birthday party next month.

Thursday I was sewing again plus getting ready for a little mini market at my mum’s. I made bow boards out of my noticeboard and organised all my jewellery. When I picked up the girls we went out for dinner and then called at mum’s to drop my things off. We didn’t stay long before heading home though and I spent the evening watching Chris and Jon play X-Wing and then the three of us played Betrayal at the House on Haunted Hill.

In the morning mum sent a picture of my mini market and I was pretty pleased with how it looked. Sadly not many people turned up to her coffee morning but I did make three sales. I spent the day printing out all the sheets for Nat’s murder mystery and then went on to sewing Christmas stockings. Sunday was similar to Saturday, in that I sewed most of the day. We had Charlie (my brother’s, girlfriend’s son) around for some of the day but he just played with the girls on DS and Xbox etc. Chris bought us Chinese takeaway for dinner and it was the end of a very pleasant week

Have you heard of the card game called Timeline? I hadn’t until recently but it’s definitely going to become a firm game night favourite! Looking through the options you can get for Timeline, there are several different versions. These include; Historical Events, Inventions and the version I got, Music & Cinema. The basic principle of the game is to lay your cards in the right date order – a timeline – and therefore I knew Music & Cinema was really the only one I stood a chance with!

Each card, no matter what version you play, has two sides. One which says only the event, invention, song, movie etc. and the other which has that information plus a date. Since I played the Music and Cinema version, I’ll give my explanation in terms of that!

To begin the game, every player gets given four cards each. These cards must be played so you can’t see the date side. You then start the game by placing a draw pile and turning over one card so that you can see the date. This begins your “Timeline”. Each player then takes it in turns to try and lay one of their cards. At the beginning it’s a lot easier, as you just have to pick before or after the original card. However as more cards get laid and time gaps get smaller, its much more tricky to know whereabouts your card belongs (unless you’re a history buff of course!). If you lay your card correctly, play passes to the next person and you are one card down. If you lay it incorrectly, the card is discarded and you must draw another from the draw pile to replace it.

Despite thinking I would have a chance when it came to cinema and music, I can tell you now that I was no wiser than anyone else sat at that table. As much as it’s great having some knowledge, there is a whole lot of guessing goes on and you may as well be playing the card game “Higher or Lower” as you often feel like shouting “Higher!!” or “Lower!!”. And if you like things complicated, the great news is, you can add more cards to this pack. The other versions of the game all work alongside it as expansions. So ultimately you could be making timelines of cinema and music, inventions, historical events, discoveries etc.

I really enjoyed this game and I have to admit I’ll be leaving it out of the cupboard to play any time someone new comes around. With any luck I might actually start to learn some dates and this will help me both when playing the game and when attempting general knowledge quizzes!

The game is available online at Amazon and on the high street at Waterstones – RRP £12.99

Have you ever heard of Dobble? It’s such a fun game and this last week I played it with the kids. We had such a good time that I wanted to share it with you!

Dobble is what I would call, a quick game or a starter game. It’s ideal as a travel game or something to do with the kids, but if you were having a gaming evening, Dobble would be a good game to start with, to get everyone in the mood. Inside of the box, is round cards. The cards are made up of multiple symbols, different on every card but always with one overlapping to another card. There are 5 suggested mini games that you can play with these cards, so the girls and I gave each one a go.

I don’t know if you can read the instructions, but set up is really simple. One face down card in front of each player and a draw pile in the middle with face up cards. On go, players turn their card over and try to match a symbol from their own card, to the card on the draw pile. As soon as they spot one, they say the name of the symbol out loud and take the card. This continues till the draw pile is gone and the person with the most cards wins! Simple right? But honestly a lot of fun. The other games are all similar, but with a slight variation to make a different game.

After playing all of the games, the girls and I loved Hot Potato best. This got us shouting and screaming and in turn laughing loudly. It was a lot of fun and actually the girls were much better at this game than me. Megan also liked the first one, while Lily liked the last one. As you can see from each of the instructions, each mini game is just a little different and you can even make a tournament using all five games.

While the game is totally suitable for children from about 7-8 years old upwards, its also fun for adults. I had a blast playing it myself with the kids but I can’t wait to play a game with my friends too.

Do you like the sound of Dobble, would you like one for yourself? Well obviously you could buy one from retailers such as Argos, WHSmiths, John Lewis or Tesco and Waterstones on the High Street (RRP £12.99)… or you could just enter my competition! The conditions are really easy! Enter with the rafflecopter below, until the end of September, when a winner will be drawn at random. Only open to UK residents I’m afraid, as the item is being directly shipped from Esdevium Games.

This week I have managed to make notes in a draft post so writing this round-up doesn’t seem half as daunting! Yay me! So… Monday Chris was at work early and the girls went to school. I spent majority of my day on the computer, catching up with blogging and getting ready for my scheduled posts during my April holiday. The girls didn’t have any Singing Stars this week but instead we had the dentist. I picked them up from school and we headed there, via my mum’s to brush our teeth. When we got to the Dentists it was straight in and out pretty much and so I called Chris to see if he wanted to meet for Burger King and then have a lift home. On the way to pick him up I got a flat tyre and with no wheel wrench and no jack I was pretty screwed. I called my insurance/breakdown recovery, only to find out I didn’t have any so by the time Chris got to me, I sent him to find a wheel wrench and jack to get us sorted. Eventually we managed to get the flat tyre off and the spare on, so headed to Burger King and grabbed some food before heading home. Chris and I spent the evening watching TV, while I blogged and then we also watched The Walking Dead.

On Tuesday morning I was tasked with returning the jack we had borrowed (we bought the wheel wrench) and so I dropped off the kids and then took the jack back. I headed to Tanvic to get my tyres sorted and while they were being done I headed into town. Whilst in Primark, the Be Our Guest breakfast reservations became available and so Amy and I had a few moments of madness while we tried to organise that. The tyre place rang to say that they didn’t actually have my tyre in stock but could order it and I could go back the next day. Unfortunately my car was already booked in the garage for the next day so instead I said I’d take it back Thursday. I headed home for a while and chilled while watching TV and getting some more blogging done. I was feeling a bit blah and so when Chris arrived home he ordered us pizza and chips and we vegged out while waiting for the girls to get home. They arrived back around 7pm and Lily went straight to bed, while Megan was still up when Jon and my brother Chris arrived. However Megs went to bed fairly soon and we all sat down at the dining table to play board games – this was Chris’ birthday party. The first game we played was called “Cash ‘n’ Guns and it was fantastic. Really simple and easy to play, fairly quick for each round and hilariously funny. We ended up playing it three times and genuinely I loved it.

After Cash n Guns, we played a Walking Dead board game that Chris got last year for his birthday and we never got around to playing. Sadly it was pretty crap and so I don’t imagine we’ll be playing that again! Such a shame too as the simpler (and cheaper) Walking Dead card game that he also got last year was actually pretty good. The boys finished off with a few rounds of Inn Fighting, a dice and card game that didn’t really interest me. I moved through to the lounge and waited for everyone to leave, heading to bed when they did.

On Wednesday I dropped the girls off at school and then took my car to the garage, where mum picked me up. We headed back to her house for the day and watched Divergent, since she’s just recently read the book series. Mum went out over lunch so I wrote some blog posts and got myself some food. Megan ended up coming home with mum from school as she was feeling unwell. At the end of school time, mum gave me a lift down to get my car and then she collected Lily from school and took her home. I went to school myself but it was Parent’s Evening so I hung around and waited for my appointment. Both girls are doing really well which I was incredibly pleased to hear and this was by far Lily’s best parent’s evening to date as well. I drove back to mum’s to pick up the girls and then we headed back home and the girls went to bed. I made myself some dinner and watched TV, while I waited for Chris to come home from work. Afterwards he was home we watched some Kitchen Nightmares before heading to bed.

Some of Lily’s class work that I took a picture of at Parent’s Evening

On Thursday I headed out to take the girls to school but met my mum midway who actually took Megan off me and took her to Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar. Megan was participating in a Maths competition that morning and my mum had volunteered to provide lifts. After dropping Lily off at school it was back to Tanvic to get my tyres done but this time instead of heading into town I just sat and waited. My tyres were done by about 10am and so I headed to Tesco and got some shopping done before heading home. The majority of the day was spent tidying the house and then afterwards I went to get the girls from school. Megan had done really well in the Maths competition and her team had come first, beating all the other schools that had taken part! I was so incredibly proud of her. When we got back we had three Disney tasks to fit in – one from the day before (dress up Disney), one from that day (make or draw Disney) and one from the previous week (watch The Lion King). It was sort of hectic but we got dinner and then managed to fit it all in. I even made Chris a Cornflake Tart (his request, instead of a birthday cake). Once Lily was in bed, Megan and I wrapped Chris’ presents, as well as two for my nephews as it was their birthday party at the weekend. Megan then headed to bed and I worked some more on my blog. When Chris got home he had some of his cornflake tart and we both had a glass of wine. We headed to bed around 11pm as we were both too tired to stick it out till midnight.

When we woke up on Friday morning, it was of course Chris’ birthday. The girls came into our room and we opened presents and cards in bed. After that we all had to get ready as usual as the girls still had school and we were even going that morning too. Megan was in Shine Assembly and she got a certificate for her work. She was also in Assembly for the Maths competition the day before, where they all got certificates for coming first. As assembly ended the Eclipse was happening and so Year 5 and 6 were going into the Playground to watch it. Mum asked if we could stay and watch from there and so we did.

After leaving school we headed to the garage as there had been a car there on Wednesday that might have been suitable for Chris. However it was sold already so that was that! Chris and I headed into town and got McDonalds breakfast for his birthday treat. He then went to work for 11am and I headed into town. I really only went to Primark as the time before I’d ended up dumping all my stuff without paying for it (don’t ask!). I bought a few things for holiday and then headed back to my car. I went home for a few hours and then turned out again to get the girls. When we got back from school they had dinner and we watched The Incredibles. After that they went to bed and I blogged while waiting for Chris to come home. When he was back he had more cornflake tart and this time I made him some custard to go with it! We headed to bed around 11pm as I was feeling pretty tired.

On Saturday Chris let me have a bit of a lie-in and so when I got up it was nearly 10am. His dad called around for a while and so to let them talk, the girls and I started to properly pack their suitcases and check off their lists. After Chris’ dad was gone we all headed downstairs and then girls help me set the table and cook brunch (though more like lunch) for us all. I’d originally promised Chris a fried breakfast for his birthday but because we’d gone to Assembly it hadn’t been possible and this was to make up for it. After food we were all stuffed and it was hard to find the energy to do anything. However I worked on some sewing projects, cutting out pieces and doing as much as I could with the fabric I had. The Disney task was to cook Disney food and so we put Baymax faces on marshmallows and toasted them. It was simple but fun and nice to do something a little different for a change. In the early evening we all settled down to watch Cars and we ordered takeaway (another treat for Chris’ birthday). Once it was finished and the girls were in bed, Chris and I took turns to have a bath and then I worked on Lily’s latest dress bodice until we headed to bed.

Sunday came and went far too fast! Lily woke us early and Chris was in a fairly foul temper all day. I tried to ride it out but for the most part I just kept the girls out of his way so as not to annoy him more! At 10am I popped out to Boyes as I needed some material and when I got back I worked on my sewing. At 11.30am we headed out to Scunthorpe and to my brother’s house, as it was his twin boys birthday party and we were invited. After arriving at around 12.15pm, we stayed for a couple of hours and left at around 2.30pm. It was a lovely time and it was so nice to see my nephews after quite some time. When we got home, I went back to my sewing projects. The girls ended up sitting with me and making dolls clothes which was harder than they expected but very cute. We spent hours in the dining room, eventually making dinner and all sitting in there to eat it as well. Afterwards Lily went to bed and I started working on some blog stuff for Twice the Mum – sorting out some books and movies for our From Page to Screen feature. Once that was done I made a start on some actually sewing on my sewing machine but it didn’t feel like I got much done before eventually heading to bed!

It’s been a funny sort of a week, that’s felt incredibly busy. I can’t wait till the girls have finished this one last week of school so I can just concentrate on getting ready for Florida!

I both love and hate this Monday round-up thing. It feels like such a chore to actually write (not to mention I feel like everyone except Amy skips over it) but at the same time I’m always glad to have it as a reference! Second week back at school this week and this time a full week. The girls coped a bit better, not being so tired, but it still felt like a struggle at times. Chris is still working Monday to Friday, 9am till 5.30pm, so that keeps life very much in a routine.

After taking the kids to school on Monday, I spent the whole day taking pictures of my jewellery. It seemed to take forever but I knew I had to get it done in the daylight. I obviously stopped for dinner and briefly to check mail (and place a Disney Store order) but otherwise it was a full day of photography. At the end of school I went to pick up the kids and we all headed home. I made the girls and myself some dinner, while also starting on Chris’ so it was ready when he got home. The girls also wanted to make another hair bow for their “make Disney” task and so we made a Baymax bow. In the evening I spent time catching up on my blog but ultimately I was so tired that Chris and I headed to bed early. I was very close to finishing my book “Allegiant” so I got that read and then we went to sleep. Tuesday started off the same, getting up and ready, then dropping the kids off at school. Their dad was having them after school which meant I had a whole day to myself without having to think about turning out to pick them up. I headed into town, once I got back to Gainsborough, and had a wander around. I visited the ribbon lady on the market as well as calling into Boyes for a few bits too. I also went to Boots and weighed myself, along with Heron for some food shopping. After that I went to M&S for some healthy ready meals and then headed home. The rest of the day I spent listing my jewellery on Etsy, though I hated it so much that I got easily distracted and procrastinated lots. I made myself dinner and got dinner ready for Chris too. When the girls got home they pretty much headed straight to bed and Chris and I spent the evening watching TV.

On Wednesday I tried to plough on with getting my jewellery listed and once I’d got majority of it done, I started listing some things on Ebay. I got quite into it, sorting out a load of stuff, only to realise I could only list 20 things for free before getting charged 35p each (I do hate that!). However by the time I’d had lunch and got as much listed as I could, it wasn’t far off the time I needed to go get the kids so I headed out and picked them up from school. When we got back, the girls went to get changed as their disney task was to dress up. I then made dinner for us all and some for Chris when he got home, before settling down to watch some TV. I had good intentions to sit down and blog that evening but ended up getting myself distracted. My eye also started to hurt so after spending majority of the evening looking at Wedding dresses – I just made a simple post about some Disney dresses I found.

Thursday I took the girls to school again and this time my mum was having them overnight. I popped to her house to drop off Megan’s iPad and a disney book, stayed for a cup of tea but then headed home. My eye had really puffed up and I was starting to feel a bit down, so I ended up bumming around the house all day, not really getting much achieved. I watched movies back to back all day – Sharknado, then Snow White & the Huntsman, then Step Up. I did make some progress with Olivia’s “Woody” dress, but not much. Chris was a sweetheart though and on his way home he called at Aldi. He brought my roses, cookies and chocolate which made me cry but only because it was so sweet. He then insisted on spending the whole evening with me – to look after me – so we sat watching TV and then watched a movie called “In Time” which was actually better than I expected.

On Friday, because Mum had the girls overnight, I got a lay in. Sadly the postman woke me at 9am but it was okay as it was mail I wanted. I felt a bit miserable to begin with as my eye was still hurting but I pulled myself together and tried to have a constructive day. I went out for my first every run and while I didn’t run much of it (unfit and asthma) I was at least proud to have tried. I did 1.64 miles there and back so at least it was some exercise! Mum brought the kids home for me and stayed for a cup of tea – but then after she left we realised we still had a Disney task to do. We watched “The Little Mermaid” and had dinner, before the girls headed to bed (along with a chapter of the Never Girls, since we’d missed out on reading together the night before). Once Chris was home I assured him I felt better today and he could spend the evening on his computer, so I vegged out and watched more TV, as well as finally watching “Friends with Benefits”. I spent the evening sewing Amy’s “Kiss the Girl” dress too, so that will be ready this coming weekend for her to try on!

On Saturday we had to be woken by the alarm at 9am, because Chris had his second driving lesson at 10am. We all got up and while Chris was out on his lesson, the girls and I wrote a list for Florida – all the things we need to take with us and buy before we go. When Chris got home, I made pancakes for us all and we all sat down together to eat them. I’ll admit we were very naughty and all had sweet pancakes, so it was a terrible lunch really! During the day my Disney Store order arrived and sadly the towel I ordered for Megan was damaged. I rang to sort it out though and I’m glad to say that as of today (Monday) its all been dealt with fast and efficiently (go Disney!). I don’t really remember what we all ended up doing in the afternoon but I know it went by fast. The girls and I realised we had Disney themed food to make and after much deliberation, made honey and vanilla Pooh Bear biscuits. Megan didn’t like them and I don’t really like honey (plus dieting) so we forced Chris to eat them all. In the end, even he objected! Nat came around in the evening (can you believe its been 4 weeks since I last saw here?!) and we had a much overdue catch up. It was almost midnight by the time she left but it was great to finally see each other. I went to bed straight after she left though as I was exhausted!

Finally Sunday and we had nothing at all planned. Chris turned on the Xbox and started to play Ms Splosion Man, only to capture both the girls’ interest. He ended up spending the morning playing with them, till we all stopped for lunch at around 12.30pm. While they were all playing, I was sewing, but it was nice to all be in the same room at the same time. After lunch, it was suggested we could play a board game and so we did. First came “Game of Life” – an electronic version called Twists and Turns, which we played for 20 years (that sounds like a long time lol). I won! Afterwards we picked Disney DVD Trivial Pursuit, which we teamed up for. Lily and I were together on one team and Megan and Chris on the other. We were pretty neck and neck for most of the game but Lily and I stole it at the end – largely because my dice rolling was better than Megan’s (and because I know more Disney stuff than Chris and Megan combined!). By the time we finished it was 5.30pm and I was feeling too lazy to cook and so we were all naughty and ordered takeaway. Since Chris is now being careful with what he eats (I’ll update in my Get Fit Friday this week), we were really careful and ordered the bare minimum. While we were waiting for takeaway to arrive we watched The Bee Movie, and then continued to watch while we ate etc. Afterwards it was time for Lily to go to bed and so Megan settled down to paint her peg doll and then update her blog. Finally my eye was feeling a bit better so I went back to sewing and got the majority of Olivia’s dress finished.

Afterwards I sat and looked through Hot Topic for the bazillionth time, then finally got around to posting my 52 Project photos and also my Disney Countdown catch up.

It’s been a pretty busy week but at the same time I know its not half as busy as it used to be when I was working. I feel like I have so many things I want to do but only end up doing about a third of it. Hopefully over time I’ll sieve my way through everything. Now my jewellery is mostly listed, that’s one thing less to do. I need to get some dresses sewn, and some more things listed on Ebay. After that I’ll hopefully be able to concentrate more on my blog and maybe even get around to writing my book! Back next week, for another round up!